Officers Richard Niven (left) and Jeffrey Smoak handle guns that were bought back at St. Benedict's Church in Oakland.

Photo: Michael Short, Special To The Chronicle

Officers Richard Niven (left) and Jeffrey Smoak handle guns that...

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One man counts the $400 he received for his two guns.

Photo: Michael Short, Special To The Chronicle

One man counts the $400 he received for his two guns.

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OPD officers enter gun serial numbers into their database before they are slated to be destroyed. The Oakland Police Department offered an anonymous gun buy back to the community at St. Benedict's Church in Oakland, CA Saturday December 115th, 2012.

Photo: Michael Short, Special To The Chronicle

OPD officers enter gun serial numbers into their database before...

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The gun buyback in Oakland at St. Benedict's Church brought out people in droves.

Photo: Michael Short, Special To The Chronicle

The gun buyback in Oakland at St. Benedict's Church brought out...

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The event drew a mile-long line of cars.

Photo: Michael Short, Special To The Chronicle

The event drew a mile-long line of cars.

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OPD Officer Smoak examines a handgun as he and other officers catalog the weapons into OPD's database before they are slated to be destroyed. The Oakland Police Department offered an anonymous gun buy back to the community at St. Benedict's Church in Oakland, CA Saturday December 115th, 2012.

Photo: Michael Short, Special To The Chronicle

OPD Officer Smoak examines a handgun as he and other officers...

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OPD Officer Smoak(L) check guns for serial numbers that are then entered into OPD's database. The Oakland Police Department offered an anonymous gun buy back to the community at St. Benedict's Church in Oakland, CA Saturday December 115th, 2012.

Arturo Hurtado of Richmond was still stricken with grief over the mass shooting in Newtown, Conn., that left 20 schoolchildren dead when he awoke Saturday morning.

So he decided to get rid of his gun - "that darn thing," he called it - and purged it from his home.

"I've got kids, man," said Hurtado, who works at Waste Management in Oakland and has children ages 14, 10, 6 and 1. "Kids are curious. Kids don't know any better. I had it locked in a toolbox, so I don't know. ... I just know it had to go."

Hurtado was among hundreds of Bay Area residents who dropped off their firearms at buyback locations in Oakland and San Francisco on Saturday, collecting $200 cash for their weapon, no questions asked.

Organizers said both locations saw crowds twice as large as expected. In East Oakland, a mile-long line of cars waited on 82nd Avenue to enter a parking lot at St. Benedict's Church, with some running out of gas while idling. In San Francisco, people stood in pouring rain outside the Omega Boys Club in the Dogpatch neighborhood to exchange their guns for cash.

By the end of the day, organizers expected more than 600 guns to be turned in.

Hurtado was a rare customer. Not only was Friday's school shooting his primary motivation, but also he walked away without taking the cash.

"I'm just glad it's out of my house," he said.

Some spending money

Most, however, were happy to make off with a little spending money for the holidays while checking a concern off the to-do list. One Oakland resident who declined to give his name said his uncle suffered from dementia and it was time "to tie up the loose ends around the house." Another 79-year-old woman sold three handguns that belonged to her deceased husband. Elizabeth Jackson, 59, said she was moving to Tracy and wanted to sell two handguns and a shotgun before she left town. "But I'm keeping one for protection," she added.

George Harris, 66, of Montclair said he was selling back three handguns he had inherited. He said he feared his home would get burglarized, putting his guns in the hands of criminals.

"I'm happy to do this," Harris said as his wait in line passed the two-hour mark. "But I wish it was more efficient."

Olis Simmons, president of Youth UpRising, the East Oakland nonprofit that helped coordinate the buyback effort, said while the school shooting on the other side of the country was still fresh on the minds of locals, the strong turnout was driven more by the continuing gun violence in Oakland. Just hours before the buyback began at 10 a.m., for example, four people were wounded by gunfire about six blocks from the church.

Oakland homicides a factor

"One hundred twenty-plus homicides in Oakland this year is the driving force for today," Simmons said. "Yesterday's tragedy was a tragedy. People feel despair about gun violence in America and the question is, 'What can I do?' Well, this is it."

In San Francisco, residents wrapped hunting rifles in wool blankets and carried their handguns in pillowcases. People waiting in line said a neighbor brought carnations to "lighten the mood" and some residents corked their guns with flowers.

Tony Vaughn, 52, who had a flower sticking from his .22-caliber rifle, said he had hidden the gun behind a water heater years ago. After Friday's shooting rampage in Connecticut, he remembered where he put it and decided to turn it in.

"Not just better for this city," Vaughn said of the weapon that will be destroyed, "but for the whole world."

San Francisco Sgt. Hector Jusino recalled a department buyback day in 2007, when officers set up shop at the Civic Center and collected 100 guns. He predicted 300 guns would be taken in Saturday.

"Based on this success," he said, "I think our department would be open to doing it again."

In Oakland, so many residents had lined up that the private donor who financed the paybacks doubled the resources and sent more cash to the church parking lot.